GEOTECHNICAL ENGINEERING 2 (Foundation engineering)

Lecturer: Engr. MMRTating

CHAPTER 2 Lecture 1
SHEAR STRENGTH OF SOIL
Laboratory test for determination of shear strength parameters
1. Direct shear test
2. Tri-axial test
DIRECT SHEAR TEST:
Normal Stress
=N/A

Shear stress
s =R/A

Where: A = area of failure plane in soil

= cross sectional area of the shear box

1|
Page

GEOTECHNICAL ENGINEERING 2 (Foundation engineering)

Lecturer: Engr. MMRTating

2|
Page

GEOTECHNICAL ENGINEERING 2 (Foundation engineering)

Lecturer: Engr. MMRTating

3|
Page

GEOTECHNICAL ENGINEERING 2 (Foundation engineering)

Lecturer: Engr. MMRTating

4|
Page

GEOTECHNICAL ENGINEERING 2 (Foundation engineering)

Lecturer: Engr. MMRTating

5|
Page

GEOTECHNICAL ENGINEERING 2 (Foundation engineering)

Lecturer: Engr. MMRTating

6|
Page

GEOTECHNICAL ENGINEERING 2 (Foundation engineering)

Lecturer: Engr. MMRTating

Problem 1: The following are the results of direct shear test performed on two identical samples of the soil. In
test 1, the sample shears at a stress of 71 kPa when the compressive stress is 95 kPa. In test 2, the sample
shears at a stress of 104 kPa when the normal stress is 150 kPa.
a. Determine the value of the apparent cohesion.
b. Determine the internal angle of friction.
c. Determine the shear stress at a depth at a depth of 4 m if the unit weight of soil is 15.6 kN/m 3
Problem 2: A series of undrained shear box test (area of box = 360 mm 2) were carried out on a soil with the
following results.
Normal load (N)

Shear force at failure

90

70

180

96.5

270

123

a.
Determine
the cohesion
with respect
to the total
stresses.
b. Determine
the angle of
friction

Problem 3: In a direct shear test, the soil was determined to have an angle of internal friction of 31 degrees
and cohesion of 26 kPa. If the normal stress is 150 kPa, compute the following
a. Total shear stress
b. Force required to cause failure in shear when the sample has a dimension of 50 mm by 50 mm
and height of 75 mm.
Problem 4: A sample of sand is subjected to direct shear testing at its normal water content. Two test are
performed. For one of the test, the sample fails at a shear stress of 3000 psf when the normal stress is 4000
psf. In the second test, the sample shears at a stress of 4000 psf when the normal stress is 6000 psf. From
these data determine the ff;
a. Angle of internal friction
b. Cohesion of soil
Problem 5: A cohesive soil with an angle of shearing resistance of 28 degrees has a cohesion of 32 kPa. The
shear stress at failure is 64 kPa.
a. Compute the normal stress
b. Determine the confining pressure
c. Find the maximum principal stress

7|
Page